Resolution Schmezolution

I love New Year's Day. It's a chance to reflect on the year gone by, on all the things I've accomplished, and all the things I want to do during the next 365. I love it when people ask me what are my new year's resolutions because I always know the answer – my resolutions are exactly the same every year. Stay true to myself and enjoy life. Some people resolve to quit smoking. Others resolve to be a better person, or take more risks, or take a vacation, or stop being a workaholic. Out With Resolutions The truth is, I don't believe in making resolutions. Resolutions are typically about making a change, and change requires much more than a resolution to come about. I believe in making commitments. Resolutions are like empty promises that can be cast aside on a whim or an alternate desire. And what good is that? Commitments are born from desire, with clear vision, an intuitive plan, and simple steps. Every year, I see companies make resolutions to make more money, or cut costs, or treat their employees better, or give more, but you know what? They can't do all those things, and they don't. Because they're empty, generic, unattainable. When someone is serious about making something happen, they make a commitment. So I say out with the resolutions. Let's ring in the year with some good, realistic, reachable commitments. Here are mine: In 2009, I commit to: 1. Changing the design world. 2. Launching 12 new products. 3. Hiring 2 people. 4. Beginning to learn to speak, read, and understand Japanese. 5. Making a concerted effort to get my first novel published (not self-published). 6. Becoming a better salesperson. 7. Figuring out how to pour gnocchi into the pan without boiling hot water splashing on me. Now, you may be thinking, how are these commitments any different from resolutions? That's a good question. For starters, I have been thinking about these things for months and years. I have already developed a plan for them last year so that they can be reached this year. That means that none of them are knee-jerk responses to an annual question, and it means that I am already personally invested in their success. Notice that they all start with 'ing' action words. Action speaks louder than words, especially in reference to your commitments. Scale is relative Take a look at how simple my commitments are in comparison to something like 'quitting smoking'. Now, I don't smoke, so I have no first-hand knowledge of this, however, I know many people who do smoke. Many of them tell me they want to quit, but they say it's too hard, or they enjoy it too much. None of them have any idea how long it will take, and they have no plan of attack. Quitting smoking is a lifetime commitment to self-discipline and health. It requires both a physical and mental change. It is a tremendously daunting task for those addicted to nicotine, and for those who rely on it during stressful times. I wonder what the ratio is of those who resolve to quit versus those who resolve and actually quit. If they don't quit, guess what? They can make the same resolution next year. In short, 'quitting smoking' is too big a task to put down to a simple New Year's resolution. Worse still is the fact that when you fail at something, you have more ammunition stockpiled against the idea of reaching the goal. In contrast, my commitments are all simple things that require only self-discipline and a plan, yet they have the capacity to make a large, positive impact on my business and life. I am already familiar with them all because I have been thinking about them for a long time. I know how long they will take, and what is required to reach them. If I don't reach them all in one year, I can keep working on them without having to start all over again the next year. I can hear you protesting right now, 'Changing the design world? How is that a simple thing?' Scale is relative. It's my commitment, so it can be as large or as small and as simple or complex as I think I can handle. It requires no physical changes and nothing that I can't set in motion by myself. The biggest of changes often require only minor shifts in philosophy. My commitment asks for an influence on others, not a change in myself. Making New Year's commitments reinforces my goals and keeps me moving in a positive direction. 5 Tips for Making Your Resolutions Into Reality 1. Call your resolutions commitments instead - Commitments keep you more involved and personally invested. 2. Keep them simple - If your commitments are too complex or too hard, they are easy to put off until next year. 3. Make them actionable - Use action words to describe them so that you know how to start and what to do. Make sure they are things you can actually do. 4. Commit to your long-term goals - If your commitments are not reachable within one year, guess what? After a year of concerted effort towards reaching them, when it comes time to set next year's commitments, your goals can evolve to the next step instead of having to start over from scratch. 5. Use a gimme - Make at least one commitment that you know, without a doubt, you can achieve in the coming year. Everyone needs a rest at some point. If you can reach an easy goal during a rest period, you will keep your forward momentum going. I suppose this article takes some of the fun out of making New Year's resolutions. Just think, though, how good it will feel to actually reach your goals. You can go celebrate after each and every one! And you should. New Year's resolutions do have their advantages though: after you cast them aside, they will be waiting for you next year and the year after that too. What are your New Year's commitments? While you're figuring those out, I'll be here resolving to keep my commitments. 2009-01-03T05:50:48Z

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resolution-schmezolution

2009-01-04T06:40:52Z

Resolutions are typically about making a change, and change requires much more than a resolution to come about. I don't believe in making resolutions. I believe in making commitments.

Resolution Schmezolution

2009-02-24T09:48:14Z